
Community identification
Masked Hunter (Nymph)
Reduvius personatus
- Order & Family
- Order: Hemiptera, Family: Reduviidae
- Size
- 15 to 22 mm when fully grown
Natural Habitat
Often found indoors in homes, barns, and storage areas, or outdoors under rocks and debris
Diet & Feeding
Carnivorous predator that eats small arthropods like bed bugs, flies, and carpet beetles
Behavior Patterns
The nymph covers its sticky body with dust and lint for camouflage; it is primarily nocturnal and a solitary hunter
Risks & Benefits
Benefits humans by eating household pests; however, it can deliver a painful (but not medically significant) bite if handled